


I Choose Us

by dvg



Series: Hard to Love [2]
Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Alternate Universe, Idiots in Love, M/M, Sequel, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-15 02:42:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29801739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dvg/pseuds/dvg
Summary: Sequel to "Hard to Love"
Relationships: Aaron Dingle/Robert Sugden
Series: Hard to Love [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2190684
Comments: 16
Kudos: 146





	I Choose Us

**Author's Note:**

> I initially wrote this as a one shot for Valentine's Day and never got it finished. "Hard to Love" has been my favorite story to write and I miss them so I decided why not continue on with their story.

Robert was just getting out of a meeting when a message from Aaron popped up on his phone.

It wasn't a message he wanted to read. He didn't want to hear that Aaron's return home had been delayed. Again. Aaron was supposed to be on a plane tonight after spending the last three weeks shooting his new film on location, now he had to stay another few days and Robert could almost feel the color draining from his face.

He had been looking forward to this day for weeks. He'd even gotten a sitter for tomorrow night, had plans to cook Aaron this amazing dinner and show him all the ways he'd missed his husband.

_Well, what the fuck am I supposed to do now?_

He couldn't reply back to Aaron right now, not when he was feeling this rage inside of him that was threatening to erupt any minute now. He needed to be alone. Maybe he would go down to the boxing studio before he picked Mila up from school and take his frustrations out on a boxing bag before he did something crazy like take it out on someone that didn't deserve it.

He rested a hip against his desk and rubbed his face with his hands, resigning himself to the fact that his husband wasn't coming home.

What was so important that he couldn't come home? When they had talked on the phone last night Aaron had said they were pretty much done filming, that there were only a few scenes left to shoot. Robert had been expecting him to be done today and on that plane tonight as planned and back in his arms before midnight.

 _Well so much for that,_ Robert thought as he grabbed his jacket from the hook by the door.

Being married to a famous, Oscar winning actor had it's drawbacks. The constant travelling, the unpredictable schedules and being away for days, sometimes weeks at a time just to name a few. Robert didn't think he'd ever get used to it.

Unfortunately that meant plans got cancelled, date night's were postponed. Robert couldn't honestly remember the last night they'd spent any time alone.

Five months ago, just shortly after they got married, Aaron had been nominated and won an Oscar for _Hard to Love,_ the movie Aaron had just starting shooting when they first met. Now Aaron was one, if not the most, sought after actor in the country. His face was on every magazine, the media persistently hounding him for interviews, not to mention script after script being delivered to the house from production companies who wanted him to read for the leading part in their films.

Aaron was hot right now, and so was his career. Which unfortunately meant Aaron was constantly away. He'd rarely been home lately and it was starting to take its toll on their marriage and Robert's sanity and patience. Robert never brought it up, he didn't want Aaron to feel guilty about having a career. After all, Robert had known what Aaron's life was like before they got together.

Robert knew how important Aaron's career was to him, and he was trying to be supportive, but damn it he'd been gone twenty days of the past thirty. While he was happy for Aaron and all the Oscar buzz surrounding his latest movie, Robert missed him.

A lot, and it was starting to drive him mad.

* * *

_2 days later_

It was nearly eleven when Aaron finally pulled his car into the drive. All the lights in the house were off, and after he grabbed his bags from the trunk and unlocked the front door, he realized the house was not only dark, but it was empty.

_What the hell?_

Sighing, he took his bags upstairs and left them on the bed. He would unpack later. Right now he needed to wash away the long and boring flight off of him. He just couldn't catch a break. First he had to stay another two days in London for work, then his flight home had been delayed three hours. But now that he was finally home, the only thing he had wanted to do was crawl into bed beside his husband, but his husband was nowhere to be found.

Upon further inspection he discovered not only was their bedroom deserted, but Mila's bedroom down the hall was shrouded in darkness too and she was not asleep in her bed. He tried calling Robert's cell, but when he got no answer he left a brief message for Robert to call him back _right the fuck now_ before he stripped and headed into the bathroom to take a shower.

He smelled like a fucking airport, Aaron thought in disgust. He needed to wash the grossiness off of him.

When he stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist, Aaron checked his phone. Just as he hoped, there was a message from Robert waiting for him.

_Wow, don't tell lme you actually make it home? Now you know what it feels like to be kept waiting. I'm at the pub. Your mum offered to take Mila for the night so I'm having a drink with Vic and Adam._

He grabbed his coat off the bed, leaving his unpacked bags by the closet, and ran down the stairs, desperate to lay his eyes on his husband.

He'd made a decision on the flight, one that had been at the back of his mind the last couple of weeks.

He was taking a break from acting. It was time. He was a point in his life now that his priorities had shifted.

The decision to step back from his career hadn't been a hard one to make, not after the countless days and nights he'd been away this time. His family, that was what was important. Being apart from them the last couple of weeks had made him realize that he needed to cut back, to spend more time at home. When he was single the weird schedule and endless hours of filming didn't bother him, but now he had a husband, a daughter, and the nightly phone calls and video chats just weren't cutting it.

It was the right decision, and he had never been more sure of anything in his life.

****

When Aaron walked into the pub, he found Robert standing at the bar, his back to him, but it was the man he was talking to, who was eyeing Robert like a piece of candy he couldn't wait to taste, that had Aaron seeing red.

 _Hell the fuck no,_ he thought as he watched the scene play in front of him. This guy, whoever he was, was flirting with _his husband._

Robert was charming and self-confident to the point of cocky, but this guy was something else.

He thought he could chat up and flirt with his husband? Hell, the fuck no.

"I appreciate the offer, but..." As if he could feel Aaron's eyes on him, Robert slowly turned around.

The man twirled a black straw between his fingers as he continued his lingering gaze down Robert's body. "I think you like playing hard to get."

"And I think you're delusional."

Tequila buzzed in Robert's veins, courtesy of Adam thrusting shots in his direction all night, but he wasn't drunk enough that he didn't know that the shit was about to hit the fan.

"What the fuck man." If the daggers the guy was shooting in Aaron's direction was any indication, he was annoyed at being interrupted.

Aaron shot the man a look so lethal it should have been obvious _who_ he was.

"He's married," Aaron said, grabbing Robert's hand and flashing his wedding ring in the man's face. And to further prove his point, Aaron reached out, clasped the back of Robert's neck, and tugged him forward. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew there was nothing for him to be jealous about, but something about walking into the pub and seeing some stranger trying to get his attention had Aaron feeling all possessive. It wasn't a feeling he was proud of, or ever wanted to experience again, but right now at this moment, he felt it. And acted on it.

And when he pulled Robert in for a fierce, possessive kiss, he felt Robert tense for a second before he reached out and grabbed the lapels of Aaron's jacket and yanked him closer. 

"Welcome home," Robert said when they pulled apart, his lips swollen, his eyes dark, with no other thought but the man who he had, days ago, been so frustrated with. Even though he knew the delays weren't Aaron's fault, Aaron was still hundred of miles away.

"Some welcome," Aaron said, straightening his jacket. "Come home to find some stranger flirting with you."

"He's hot." Aaron's eyes flicked to the man who continued to shamelessly flirt with Robert like Aaron wasn't even there, his dark eyes relaying a silent but very clear message: _he's mine, and don't you fucking look at him again._

This guy was really pushing it, Robert thought, and the murderous look in Aaron's eyes, Robert had rarely ever seen, was turning him on even more than he already was. There was something about Aaron's kiss that was fucking addictive and had been since the first time he'd felt those lips on his, and it only seemed to get more addictive with time.

"I'm well aware of that," Aaron said, glaring at the stranger, then turned back to Robert, the look in his eyes so full of lust Robert had to palm the erection behind the denim of his jeans that he had no hope in hell of concealing now. "And he's mine so keep your hands off of him."

Possessive Aaron was sexy as hell, and the cocky bastard knew it.

"You and me. Home," Aaron growled. "Now."

* * *

"So?" Robert said as he tossed his jacket over the back of the couch. Aaron had been quiet the whole walk back to their place. Robert knew Aaron was mad, but it wasn't his fault. He hadn't forced that guy to talk to him. He hadn't been the one to initiate things. 

If anyone had the right to be mad, it was him.

"So?" Aaron taunted him right back.

"Did you miss me?" Robert said.

"Did you miss me?" Aaroun countered.

"Hardly noticed you were gone," Robert said, but the way he was looking at Aaron gave him away. 

"Maybe I should go away more often then," Aaron said, baiting him.

"You think that's safe? I mean tonight..."

"You liked it, did you? That guy flirting with you like that?" Aaron put his hands on Robert's chest, caging him against the wall.

Robert shrugged. 

Aaron scowled.

"You know I didn't," Robert said. "I didn't do anything. I was just sitting at the bar finishing my drink. Vic and Adam had just walked out the door and this guy approached me, started talking..."

"Flirting with you, you mean."

Robert shrugged again. "It didn't mean anything. It's not like I was remotely interested in him or would ever..." He frowned at Aaron. "You don't actually think I was going to...?"

"No, of course not," Aaron said. "I just didn't like the way he was looking at you."

"How was he looking at me?"

"Like you were a dessert he couldn't wait to sample," Aaron muttered. "No one but me is allowed to look at you like that."

"Hmm," Robert said, scratching his skin. "I didn't get that impression from him at all."

"You're such a smug bastard." Aaron reached up with one hand and tangled his fingers through Robert's hair. "You know I missed you. I hate being away from you."

At the way Aaron's voice turned soft, Robert could feel himself caving. "I hate it, too. I missed you so much. Just so you know, you're not allowed to leave ever again."

"I'm not sure how the production company would feel about that," Aaron said. "I have to be back in London in a few weeks to start media rounds."

Robert didn't say anything. The last thing he wanted to do was get into an argument about Aaron having to spend more time away from home when they have more important things to do with their time, which has become more and more limited as Aaron's career just continues to soar. He's not jealous, he just misses his husband when he's gone.

He tried for humor instead, hoping it will mask his disappointment of Aaron having to leave again so soon. "How are you going to get back on a plane if your'e handcuffed to the bed?"

Aaron grinned. "That sounds kinky."

Aaron cupped the back of Robert's neck, fusing their mouths together in a kiss that went from a small flame to a blazing inferno in seconds. A tortured groan ripped from Robert's throat, and before he could form any words, Aaron kissed him again before pulling away.

"Meet me upstairs," Robert said, then disappeared up the staircase, Aaron following behind.

* * *

Aaron grabbed a hold of Robert's shirt, balling the material in his fists as he shut their bedroom door behind them and pushed Robert up against it. 

"Aaron," Robert said and tore his mouth free, and fisted his hand through Aaron's hair.

Aaron didn't say anything as he ran his hand down the front of Robert's shirt and slipped them underneath to feel Robert's skin. "Rob," he whispered in response.

Robert grunted in response, it was all his brain could manage.

Aaron's lips curved in a grin that just about had Robert's knees buckling. "I've been wanting to get you alone since I got home," he said as he nipped at Robert's jawline.

Robert shoved forward from the door and walked them across the room until Aaron's legs hit the mattress. "You've got me. You know that, right? That guy at the pub, or any other guy, they're not going to take me away from you. I've been yours since the moment I laid eyes on you."

"I know," Aaron said softly.

"This is where you belong," Robert said as he pushed Aaron against the pillows and hovered over him. "Where you should have been two days ago."

"It's not my fault the director felt the need to re-shoot those last few scenes." Aaron sighed. "You knew how crazy my life was when we got together."

"And I still wanted you anyway," Robert said, tugging on the blue tie at Aaron's throat, before tossing it to the floor. "I still do. I just missed you, that's all."

"I missed you too," Aaron murmured before crashing their mouths together, the rough feel of denim against him making him groan out of frustration and need. "But we're finally alone."

"Yeah," Robert said. "Mila is with your mum for the night. It's just you and me." He rocked his hips in a slow, methodical rhythm then brushed him lips against Aaron's.

"Fuck," Aaron said, wrapping his arms around Robert's neck as Robert kissed down his jawline. " _Rob..._ "

"Going to drive you crazy," Robert whispered in his ear, and Aaron's entire body shuddered at his words. "Going to show you how much I've missed having your body next to mine."

"Kiss me," Aaron demanded.

He would tell Robert tomorrow.


End file.
